Posted by Kiss It at c-67-170-244-202.client.comcast.net on January 11, 2004 at 22:08:40:
Damn straight! Elessar for life. Read on:
Something smelled fishy at the North American box office this weekend.
In a claim disputed by several studios, director Tim Burton's family fable "Big Fish" reeled in the No. 1 spot in its first weekend of wide release by selling $14.5 million worth of tickets, according to estimates issued on Sunday by its distributor, Columbia Pictures.
But that sounded like a whopper to others in Hollywood, particularly New Line Cinema, which said its reigning champ, "The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King" earned more. The studio reported a $14.1 million tally for its hobbit tale, and calculated that "Big Fish" earned about $13.7 million.
"They seem a little high," New Line distribution President David Tuckerman said of Columbia's estimate.
Executives from two other studios, who declined to be identified, agreed with New Line's assessment, with one saying Columbia was "a little too aggressive."
Columbia's distribution president, Rory Bruer, defended his numbers for "Big Fish," calling them "reasonable estimates."
Time will tell. The studios will issue more accurate data on Monday. Columbia Pictures is a unit of Sony Corp . New Line Cinema is a unit of Time Warner Inc .